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Legislative
Report 8-05
April 22, 2005
The Calm
Before the Storm
A few weeks ago, the press reported that the Democratic
leadership in the Senate and the Republican leadership in the House have
agreed on an overall dollar amount for the next two year budget - $12.393
billion. This agreement was hailed by many as a sign that the intense
partisanship of recent legislative sessions had finally come to an end.
Unfortunately, the report of ‘peace in our time’
appears to have been premature. Although it might appear that this
legislative session is behaving in a much more civil manner, a serious storm
is brewing.
After reaching the agreement on the overall budget, the
House and Senate immediately split on how much of that total would be
allocated to K-12. The Senate insists on $5.324 billion for schools which
would provide enough funds to maintain the “status quo”. The House,
however, wants to spend $5.175 billion for schools and use the difference to
shore up other programs such as building a new prison in Madras and adding
more funding for senior programs.
Legislators who campaigned on a “schools first”
platform and who support the Senate funding position for schools are finding
themselves labeled as being soft on crime and insensitive to the needs of
seniors. Those who support the House position are being accused of failing
to fulfill their campaign promise of providing adequate funding for
education.
What strikes me as interesting is the timing of the
agreement reached weeks ago on the overall budget amount. Neither the House
nor the Senate knows how much money will be available for the next two-year
budget and no one will know until the May economic forecast is released, yet
a fixed amount of funding has already been agreed to. I have to wonder what
will happen if the May forecast projects a significant increase or decrease
in available funding.
Regardless of the May forecast, at this point the
Democrats in the Senate are committed to appropriating $5.324 billion for K
– 12. The Republicans in the House, however, are holding firm at $5.175
billion for K – 12. Negotiations will begin in earnest this week to
hopefully agree on a K – 12 amount.
The dilemma for the entire legislature will be if the
May forecast shows an increase in available resources but the spending
agreement still forces legislators to choose between kids, seniors and
public safety; a perfect political storm.
I encourage you to share your thoughts and comments. If
you would like to give input on the state budget, please e-mail your
comments to
state.budget2005@state.or.us and they will be forwarded to all members
of the Ways & Means Committee.
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